How Much Does Pest Control Cost?

Last updated: September 2026

Pest control costs around $172 for a typical visit, with most jobs falling between roughly $100 and $600. That range is wide because “pest control” covers everything from a single wasp nest to a bed bug treatment running into thousands, and the pest you are dealing with matters more to the price than the size of your house.

This guide gives current figures by pest and by service type, explains when a recurring plan beats one-off visits, covers what actually drives your quote, and sets out how to verify a company is licensed — which for pest control runs through a different authority than most trades.

What Pest Control Costs Right Now

Angi’s 2026 data puts the typical pest control service at about $172, with a general range of $50 to $500. HomeGuide’s 2026 guide reports similar service pricing broken down by frequency.

Service	Published range	What it is
Monthly visit	$40–$75	Ongoing maintenance once the problem is under control
Quarterly service	$100–$300	The most common recurring plan for general pests
Annual plan	$300–$900	Usually several visits plus priority booking
Initial visit on a plan	$150–$300	The heavier first treatment that sets the baseline
One-time treatment	$100–$600	A single visit with no ongoing commitment
Inspection	$125–$450	Often waived if you go ahead with treatment

Location moves these numbers considerably. Angi’s city figures show averages around $105 in Phoenix and Sacramento, about $130 in Denver, and roughly $255 in New York City for the same broad service.

Cost by Pest

This is the table that actually answers most people’s question, because the pest determines the method, the number of visits and the equipment.

Pest	Published cost range
Ants	$100–$500
Spiders	$100–$300
Cockroaches	$100–$600
Rodents (mice and rats)	$150–$600
Fleas	$200–$400
Wasps and hornets	$300–$700
Mosquitoes	$80–$150 per visit, or $350–$1,000 for a season
Termites, barrier treatment	$225–$2,500
Termites, whole-home tenting	$2,000–$8,000
Bed bugs	$300–$500 per room, and $1,000–$4,000 for a whole home

Bed bugs and termites sit in their own category for a reason. Both need repeat visits and specialist equipment, both fail if a single area is missed, and both are jobs where the cheapest quote is most likely to be the one you pay twice for.

Wildlife Removal Is Priced Separately

Raccoons, squirrels, bats and possums are not pest control in the pricing sense. The work is trapping, exclusion and clean-up rather than treatment, and general pest plans almost never include it. Wildlife removal averages around $400, with most jobs between about $191 and $612.

Animal	Published range
Birds	$100–$300
Groundhogs	$150–$200
Rodents (rats and mice)	$175–$550
Squirrels	$200–$600
Bats	$230–$700
Possums	$250–$500
Skunks	$300–$600
Raccoons	$400–$600

Two things move these figures a long way. Bats are a protected species, so removal has to be humane — one-way exits and sealing rather than extermination — and droppings clean-up alone can add anywhere from $600 to $8,500 on a long-established roost. And the removal is only half the job: without exclusion work sealing the entry point, you are paying to evict an animal whose replacement can walk in the same way.

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Will Homeowners Insurance Pay for Any of This?

Almost never, and it is worth knowing before you budget on the assumption that it might.

Standard HO-3 policies exclude damage from birds, vermin, rodents and insects outright. That covers squirrels, mice, rats and termites — so termite damage, which is the expensive kind, is generally treated as a maintenance failure rather than an insured loss. The reasoning insurers use is that the damage was gradual and would have been minimal if caught earlier.

The removal itself is not covered either, for any species. Nor is attic decontamination, soiled insulation, or chewed wiring and pipes.

There are narrow exceptions. Raccoons and bats are not technically rodents or vermin, and some policies treat structural damage from a raccoon physically tearing through a vent or shingles as sudden and accidental — though many policies now exclude them by name. And where a pest problem causes a covered loss, such as a rodent chewing wiring that starts a fire, the fire damage is usually covered even though the rodent is not. Read your own policy wording rather than assuming either way.

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One-Off Treatment or a Recurring Plan?

A one-time treatment makes sense for a contained, visible problem: a wasp nest under the eaves, a single rodent that got in through a gap you have since sealed.

A recurring plan makes sense when the pressure is environmental rather than accidental — a property backing onto woodland or water, a warm climate with year-round ant and roach activity, or a history of the same pest returning every spring. The economics are straightforward: quarterly service at $100 to $300 a visit against one-off treatments at $100 to $600 each. If you would call someone twice a year anyway, the plan usually wins.

What is worth checking before signing is what the plan actually covers. Ask which pests are included and which are excluded — termites and bed bugs are commonly outside general plans — whether return visits between scheduled ones are free if the problem comes back, and whether the contract auto-renews.

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What Drives Your Quote Up or Down

• The pest itself. By far the biggest factor, as the table above shows.
• How far it has spread. A kitchen problem and a whole-house problem are different jobs with the same name.
• Property size and layout. More linear feet of perimeter, more crawlspace, more entry points.
• Access. A sealed crawlspace, a finished basement or a wall void that has to be opened all add time.
• Where you live. Both the local cost of labour and which pests are endemic to your climate.
• Season. Demand peaks in warm months, and so does pricing in some markets.
• Method. Heat treatment, tenting and fumigation cost far more than a targeted application, and sometimes require you to leave the property.
• Follow-up visits. Some quotes include them and some price each return separately — this is a common gap between two apparently similar prices.

Checking the Company Is Actually Licensed

One thing is worth knowing before you compare any quotes: pest control licensing does not sit with a contractor board. It runs through your State Department of Agriculture, which is where applicator licences are verified. Until you know that, “we’re fully licensed” is an unverifiable claim.

Our guide to choosing a pest control company sets out the full verification process, what integrated pest management means, and the specific sales tactics the EPA tells consumers to walk away from — including pricing by the gallon, which is a pricing red flag rather than a bargain.

The One Pricing Red Flag Worth Naming Here

Pricing by the gallon. The EPA flags this directly, and it is the warning sign that belongs in a cost guide rather than a vetting one, because it looks like a transparent unit price and is the opposite.

The correct amount of pesticide is whatever the product label specifies for that situation. Selling it by volume creates an incentive to apply more than the label calls for, which is both a safety problem and a billing one. A company charging by the gallon is charging you for the thing you least want more of.

The EPA’s broader framing applies to the whole decision: judge on quality and value rather than price alone, and take the time to research rather than deciding in a hurry — because a hasty choice here can cost you in health or property terms, not just money.

The Free Half of the Job

A good company will suggest non-chemical measures where they apply, and those are usually what stop the problem recurring after the treatment wears off. Pest control that is purely a spray is treating the symptom.

• Sealing gaps around pipes, vents, doors and the foundation line
• Fixing leaks and damp, since most household pests are looking for water first
• Storing food and pet food in sealed containers
• Moving firewood, mulch and rubbish bins away from the walls
• Cutting back branches and shrubs touching the roof or siding
• Clearing standing water for mosquitoes, right down to plant saucers and blocked gutters

Doing these before the technician arrives also gives them a cleaner job, which on an inspection-led contract can mean less treatment rather than more.

What a Pest Control Quote Should Spell Out

1. Business name, address, phone and the applicator licence number.
2. The pest identified, and what the inspection actually found.
3. The products to be used, with labels available on request.
4. Where treatment will be applied, inside and outside.
5. How many visits are included and over what period.
6. Whether follow-up visits are included or charged separately.
7. Preparation you must do, and how long people and pets must stay out.
8. Any guarantee, its length, and what voids it.
9. Contract length, renewal terms and cancellation notice.

The vetting habits here transfer from any trade — the licence, insurance and written-scope checks in how to verify a contractor before hiring apply just as well, with the licence check pointed at your state agriculture department instead.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Sources

• US EPA — Tips for Selecting a Pest Control Service
• Angi — Pest Control Cost
• HomeGuide — How Much Does Pest Control Cost?
• HomeAdvisor — Wildlife Removal Cost
• Policygenius — Does Homeowners Insurance Cover Animal Damage?

Run a pest control business? Ypages lists businesses across all 50 states, free — and the people reading a cost guide usually have a problem they want solved this week. Add your business free.

This article is general information, not insurance or pest management advice. Prices vary by market, pest, property and severity, and the figures above are published estimates rather than quotes. Insurance coverage depends entirely on your own policy wording — read it or ask your insurer. Pesticides are regulated products; follow label directions and your applicator’s re-entry instructions.